San Mateo County law enforcement warns against drunk driving

“We are going to have all available officers to look for impaired drivers and make sure your family and mine stay safe,” CHP Officer Art Montiel said.

CHP typically sees increased DUI and deaths during this time as people decide to celebrate the holiday season with alcohol, Montiel said. California, in 2021, had 495 people arrested by the CHP for DUI, and 29 people died during the enforcement period from 6 p.m. Friday, Dec. 31, through midnight Sunday, Jan. 2, according to Montiel. He encouraged people to stay home if drinking, noting there were ride shares, public transit and even programs from AAA, if needed. CHP views holidays as a maximum enforcement period as officers look for impaired drivers amid the added statistical risk. While DUI numbers have gone down from previous decades, the holidays see elevated dangers.

“We are improving, but when the holidays come around, we tend to forget about it,” Montiel said of driving after drinking.

The Redwood City checkpoint location has not been released, but it will stop all vehicles coming north and south, with plans to check every other vehicle if lines get too long. Montiel said it is sometimes easy to spot when someone is over the limit as they can’t stay within the lane or hit several traffic cones. Montiel said officers would check to see if there is an odor from the car and if the driver’s eyes are red and watery or slurred speech.

San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said his office issued more warrants to compel blood samples in suspected DUI cases during the holiday season, going from one per week on average to one every day.

“The two things that go up during the holidays are drunk driving and domestic violence,” Wagstaffe said.

Wagstaffe said a first-time offender would likely go on probation for three years and have to complete a first-offender program, a series of lectures on the dangers and ramifications of drunk driving. The person would also be required to have an interlocked device in their car, pay a $1,800 fine, and pay thousands in legal fees.

Wagstaffe credits Mothers Against Drunk Driving for changing the culture in the county. He noted that he had seen a sharp decrease in drunk driving cases coming to him since the 1980s when he started working in the county. According to the MADD website, drunk driving deaths in 2020 were 30% of all traffic fatalities, while 926 people are injured in drunk crashes daily.

San Mateo Sgt. Craig Collom said there would be no checkpoints in San Mateo but encouraged people to be safe during the holidays. However, he noted there would still be patrols out. The department’s next DUI checkpoint will be on Feb. 10.

SamTrans will provide free rides starting at 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31, until 3 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 1. Caltrain will also offer free service starting 8 p.m. Saturday until the end of special late-night service at 2 a.m.